"MA Senate Republicans call on Spilka to request SJC opinion on Legislative audit: Senate Republicans are asking Senate President Karen Spilka to formally request the high court to issue an advisory opinion on the voter-approved Legislative audit"

By Tim Dunn | Boston Herald

EXCERPT BELOW:

"The Caucus sent a letter to Spilka on Thursday, referencing 'the Senate's actions during the informal session of March 12,' related to two proposed ballot initiatives that are pending approval by the state Senate: H.5004– An Act to Improve Access to Public Records and H.5010– An Act to Reform and Regulate Legislative Stipends. The Senate voted during the informal session to send two orders to the SJC asking for advisory opinions on the ballot questions.

"Given these actions, we request that the Senate act similarly and consistently to place before the court questions relative to the law regarding the audit of the General Court, Chapter 250 of the Acts of 2024. This law, enacted overwhelmingly by the Commonwealth's voters, was also the subject of an initiative petition and affects the operations of the General Court. The voters who approved this law by a decisive margin deserve a clear and authoritative answer as to its constitutionality and the Legislature's corresponding obligations," the letter to Spilka reads.

"Seeking the opinion of the court is an important tool which has been used throughout the history of our state by the legislature to obtain guidance from the ultimate arbiter of constitutionality," it says.